1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to improvements in or relating to conveyers. More particularly, the present invention is concerned with an apparatus for transporting of materials on conveyer rollers, which rollers are arranged sequentially one behind the other when viewed in the direction of travel, and are secured with their respective ends in carrying brackets. The roller shafts are driven, equipped with torque transmitter means, and secured against axial shifting by means of bearings.
Conveyers with conveyer rollers are known. These generally comprise carrying brackets or support arms which are arranged at the pertaining ends of the rollers, such that the roller shafts with the corresponding rollers are arranged between such carrying brackets.
Such conveyers with rollers are furnished either with a positive, or direct, drive, or they are powered by means of a drive which acts through the intervention of friction. The conveying is carried out thereby exclusively through the friction-value which is the result of the individual values of the pertaining components. The transport of the material to be conveyed, accordingly, is only carried out when the path, or travel, is free of obstacles. According to the present state in the art this is achieved thereby that the conveyer rollers are connected only by way of frictional contact to the roller shafts, i.e. they can freely rotate, as required, with respect to the pertaining roller shafts. The roller shafts, in turn, are fixedly secured to a drive unit, which usually includes sprocket wheels which are laterally arranged with respect to a carrying bracket. The driving motion can be transmitted from roller to roller by short chains, whereby on each roller there have to be arranged two sprockets, one alongside the other. Alternatively, the driving motion or force may be transmitted by a continuous chain. On the other hand, the driving force may also be imparted by belts, or other similar means.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art carrying brackets heretofore have been mono-component brackets. The roller shafts are arranged with both ends in the pertaining carrying brackets, particularly in ball bearings which are furnished with a groove, and whereby the roller shafts are secured against axial shifting, by means of retaining rings which are arranged laterally outside of each carrying bracket and at each pertaining ball bearing.
The prior art conveyer briefly described in the foregoing has the disadvantage that it cannot readily be assembled, and the operation is only problem-free when all, or nearly all, individual components are produced with utmost precision.
For the assembly initially there have to be pressed into place in a carrying bracket, for example, into that which is directed towards the drive side, the grooved ball bearing. Subsequently, the roller shafts are inserted into the ball bearings. The conveyer rollers are mounted onto the roller shafts, and the free ends of the roller shafts are subsequently inserted into the pertaining ball bearing of the carrying bracket on the other side. This method of assembly is, accordingly, time-consuming and laborious. This applies equally to the disassembly of the prior art conveyer in the case where defective parts have to be replaced.
The further disadvantage of the prior art conveyer resides therein that the mounting in bearings and the retention of both ends of the roller shafts are carried out in grooved ring journals each of which journal, for axially securing the roller shafts, is secured, by way of retainer rings arranged laterally alongside and outside of the two carrying brackets, in the groove of a roller bearing. The recesses to the left and right in the axis of the roller shaft, for retention of the pertaining retainer rings, had to be precisely dimensioned and provided with appropriate play, because otherwise such roller would have axial play, which, in turn, would lead to detrimental repercussions in the case where the driving force is transmitted by frictional contact. In the case when such recesses will be arranged to the left and right at the outer circumference of the roller shaft in a direction too far to the interior or center, in an offset manner, then it would have been positioned in the grooved ring bearing, with the consequence that the retainer ring could not operatively register or be connected.